Professional Experience Program

The Professional Experience Program, has been revised to meet the new Teachers’ Registration Board professional standards.

Professional Experience is an important component of the Bachelor of Education combined degree. Teaching is a professional discipline and pre-service teachers need the opportunity to develop the skills and knowledge necessary to become effective practitioners.

Over the four years of the combined degree, undergraduate students are required to complete a minimum of 80 days of Professional Experience.

Master of Teaching students will complete 60 days of Professional Experience over a period of two years.

Each course includes a program of Professional Experience in child care centres, kindergartens, pre-primary centres, primary schools, combined primary/secondary schools or secondary schools depending on the area of specialisation.

This professional experience provides essential opportunities to connect theory with practice and develop the knowledge, dispositions, understandings and competencies of a beginning teacher under the guidance of experienced professionals.

Pre-service teachers are allocated to Government, Catholic and Independent schools/sites for periods of Professional Experience.

All placements of pre-service teachers in schools will be made by Placement Officers from the School of Education Professional Experience Office.

On no account should pre-service teachers directly approach schools/sites to arrange their own placement.

All students are required to be available during the scheduled Professional Experience periods as described in the relevant School of Education topic timetables.